Heritage Rail GWSR have cancelled all services this week owing to the heatwave.

 

With thanks for your post, IndustryInsider, I have now added KRS to our 'abbreviations and acronyms' page. 

 
Cancellations to services between Reading and London Paddington

Due to severe weather between Reading and London Paddington fewer trains are able to run on all lines.

Train services running to and from these stations will be cancelled or revised. Slough, Maidenhead and Twyford will not be served. Disruption is expected until the end of the day on 25/06/26.

 

Actually - No!

What has happened is that the "usual" fallback of either terminating the stopping trains from Didcot at Reading or running then non-stop between Reading and Paddington is being implemented. I assume this reduces the potential for problems when the trains might otherwise have to switch from the main to the relief lines after Slough (and before Slough on the way back).

This has been clearly explained on Journey Check.

 
O.T. From the riverside path, the Avon at Chippenham is capable of looking thoroughly lovely.

Mark

 

Yes, as you've said it's virtually impossible to quantify that as it's a moving target.

For example, an early afternoon train, say the 14:18 Westbury to Swindon, showing at 4:30am as cancelled but then reinstated at 7am is likely to have much less of a 'customer view figure' than if it was reinstated at 1pm.

I remain of the opinion that start-of-service early morning journeycheck entries should show 'may be cancelled' - with a note to say every effort is being made to run it and to check back later.  That could automatically change to 'will be cancelled' three hours before departing its origin station if it hasn't been reinstated by then as it's far less likely it will be.

 
Those traffic lights in the first pic were only installed a couple of years ago IIRC - I was living in Chippenham at the time. It was a mini-roundabout previously, and the lights just seemed to cause long queues of cars, as seen in the picture. There were a lot of complaints, and they might have adjusted the timings to improve things, but it's still a lot worse than before they were installed.

Don't know if the roundabout itself was any better in terms of the cycling route though.

 
There's no need to get hot under the collar about it, just in Melksham. 

 
Yep - there always has to be a hero.

 
We've now been upgraded to Met Office red warnings for Wednesday(40)/Thursday(39) in Melksham.

 

Thanks for the image, it's useful.

Mark

 
An easy win would be to close Monkton Hill to other vehicles, then, sign and reconfigure it, giving it segregated routes for people on cycles and on foot. Meeting people who didn't know the town the other month, it's not even signed as a route from the station (possibly because the current mix of traffic it carries is rather unhealthy).

Also, in combination with the above, at the right time of day, the riverside path makes a somewhat good walking route to the town centre. (Neither totally ok for people using wheelchairs as the gradients aren't quite in favour, so possibly better on the bus (of which there are more).) https://maps.app.goo.gl/BwmjbtXVJRPFPUdY6

Mark

 

Coming back to qualify that answer ... at the time, the decision was made that was short-to-medium term to make use of the platform extension opportunity where it was, and it didn't take the medium-to-long term view of where on the railway and with the surrounds the best place would be.   "Behind Asda" would be - IMHO - superbly better and much more intergated - but radical.  I conceeded my view; at the time I was a junior member of TransWilts and went along with the collective responsibility.  And it got us the longer platform - not to be sneezed at - rather than taking the significant risk of going for a solution that could still look good in 2040.

Under the Neighbourhood Plan, the station is key for the town but remains where it is.  Still not perfect, but we can make the best of an acceptable job and in time the various issues - or most of them - can and will be addressed.

 
From the BBC:

 

Cycling to and from Chippenham Station hasn't been pleasant the times I've done it - maybe the routes have been improved since, and maybe I haven't discovered major provision made ... but this sort of thing doesn't exactly encourage cycling here

My picture of the town centre:


And the roads down to it (from Google):




No matter how excellent the provision is at a station, people need to feel safe and confident enough to actually get to the station.  Perhaps the station improvements are just a first step in making this a station  and town that's easily cyclable?  Got to start somewhere and facilities will come into their own once the whoe place works for bicycles - as I'm seeing so much in some countries on my travels.

 

Agree that figure though with at least two trains flagged up on journey planner / check stuff as cancelled which then actually ran, the customer view figure might be just under 95%.   This week WILL be more challenging - started with 2 cancellations due to "shortage of train crew" and with weather issues anticipated ...

 

96.6% ran again last week.

I'm sure this week will be much more challenging.

 

Yes, KRS (Key Route Strategy) measures will be in place all week to try and minimise the risk of S&C failures.

 

BS EN 13129-1 "‘Railway applications - Air conditioning for main line rolling stock – Comfort parameters" has got there before you. So has BS EN 50125-1 "Railway applications. Environmental conditions for equipment - Rolling stock and on-board equipment". Both specify assumed exterior conditions which, for the mildest European zone, go up to 40°.

Both have been revised since the versions I have found some information about, and as usual the actual texts are not available. But I imagine that if the top temperature has changed it can only have gone up a bit.

I was struck by this scoping comment of BSI's: "Note 1: BS EN 50125-1 does not apply to cranes, mining vehicles, cable cars. It also does not apply to natural disasters. " Obviously that's what is wrong with all these natural disasters we keep getting - they are not being specified in standards!

 
Looks like all Paddington to Didcot services have been proactively cancelled today.

 
Doesn't add much - but this was the facility on the day of the official opening in February.

 

I too have been very glad of air conditioning, only a portable unit but it helps a lot.

As regards trains, I believe that all new trains should be designed for normal operation at an outside air temperature of 40 degrees, and should cope with 45 degrees (at a reduced performance, and with a slight increase in internal temperatures)

This is considerably in excess of Met office records, but a plausible temperature that could be reached in direct sun, in a chalk cutting, and with another train alongside producing heat.

 


And unhelpfully for those planning a journey

https://railuk.com/travel/gwr-to-run-amended-service-during-extreme-heat-on-monday-and-tuesday/

Strangely although very hot weather is expected Mon-Thur, only expecting disruption Mon-Tue, which suggests if they can manage We'd-Thur why didn't they start their planning 2 days earlier, as this hot weather has been forecast for over a week.

 

Looks like we're going to find out quite soon!

 
Pier now re connected to the main land, BBC report.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/videos/cvgl9yepjxvo

 

No.

 

 

I'm sure the Civil Service with help from Ministers of State can cope for a couple of weeks - although perhaps I am being naive in suggesting that modern politicians understand the concept of acting honourably.

Incidentally the "modern tory way" much criticised by Labour, was having "coronations" of new PMs without seeking legitimacy via a General Election.................that (very recent) position/criticism seems to have been conveniently forgotten this time around! 

 
The Elstow freight facility being on the doorstep perhaps might have been useful but reaching it would have involved laying c19th-style contractors temporary track.

Mark

 

A heavy object travelling at speed hits an almost immovable object, the amount of damage to certainly the 2 vehicles at the point of impact would result is distortion to the vehicle body.  The vehicles are designed to absorb such an impact by crumpling. 
Basically these 2 vehicles probably cannot safely, practically and quickly be moved by rail.